FAQs- How does astaxanthin work?

How does astaxanthin protect cell and mitochondrial health?  

Astaxanthin is one of natures most powerful anti-oxidants with an ORAC value of 2.8M. Once embedded into a cell or mitochondrial wall it hangs with one end inside and one end outside the cell membrane.  Oxygen Radicals are picked up and bonded with /extracted from the cell interior, passed to blood/water soluble anti-oxidants such as Vitamin C and ultimately disposed by our liver. 

Our mitochondria is our energy source for the body.   8-10% of the time the mitochondria 'misfires" creating an oxygen radical. Long term stress  (physical, environmental, dietary deficiencies, toxicity) increases the odds of misfiring which unaddressed can lead to cascading problems with animal wellness. 

Oxygen radicals are highly reactive.  Enzymes such as CQ10 that is used by our mitochondria to make ATP/energy are also mild anti-oxidants. Other enzymes and minerals found inside the cells such as CBD, Taurine and Selenium are also antioxidants.  Without astaxanthin oxygen radicals attack these enzymes and minerals depleting our ability to make energy and fight off disease.  Astaxanthin protects these enzymes from being oxidized. 

Where does your Astaxanthin come from? 

We extract astaxanthin from Haematococcus pluvialis (HP)  algae. 

How is your astaxanthin different than astaxanthin extracted from HP using the super critical carbon dioxide method? 

HP encysts astaxanthin to protect itself during winter hibernation.  The encysted molecule is by nature's design not bioavailable if ingested.  Any extraction process has to remove the proteins used to encyst the molecule.  Our process for removing these proteins is much more complete  vs. the super critical carbon method. 

Removing the cysts to expose astaxathin is only the first step.  The challenge is deliver astaxanthin, a hydrophobic molecule,  through the digestive track/blood stream into the cell and mitochondrial walls where it takes up residence.  

Our patented extraction process uses mechanical forces not found in chemical extraction to allow the proteins/starches/lipids in HP form a micelle,  effectively surrounding astaxanthin with hydrophilic shell that can shuttle the astaxanthin to the right place.  

What is a micelle? 

Micelles are lipid molecules that arrange themselves in a sphere containing both hydrophilic regions and hydrophobic regions. This structure enables the body to absorb molecules that are insoluble in blood/water. The hydrophobic astaxanthin ultimately is released from the micelle when it finds/embeds into the cell wall.

What about CBD? 

CBD is also an enzyme. Human's make it de novo, that is it is created by our bodies naturally provided we eat a balanced diet. 

CBD is a hydrophobic (water-hating) oily substance  and, as such, not water-soluble. ... however, be made water compatible if they are formulated as micro- or nanoemulsions.  Our Green Serene extraction process creates a nano-emulsion which delivers both astaxanthina and CBD into the cell.